In-Person Visit

A personal visit is the most impactful way to communicate with a congressional office. This can be coordinated as part of the annual Railroad Day on the Hill, directly through your Member of Congress’ office in Washington, D.C., or at a local district/state office near you.

The NRC also can coordinate a grassroots visit with your Member of Congress at your facility or to a project site where your employees are working. These visits give Members of Congress firsthand exposure to and knowledge of rail industry operations from constituents and other professionals who work in the industry.

Contact the NRC to inquire about scheduling a grassroots event.
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Write a Letter or Email

If you can’t be there in person, an email, letter or phone call also are effective options. Most Members of Congress have email forms on their websites where you can quickly and conveniently voice an opinion or request action or assistance. A mailed letter is effective so long as it is received prior to the vote on any pending legislation.
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Step 1: Identify your Members of Congress

If you are unsure of your U.S. Representative or Senators, you can identify them here:

• U.S. House of Representatives
• Senate

Once you’ve located your Member of Congress, click on the link to their website and then locate their contact information, such as their phone number, mailing address and email form.
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Step 2: Prepare your message for a letter or email.

Here are some “best practices” for writing to your member of congress:

• Be courteous and be direct. Provide enough information to make your point but try to keep it to one page.
• Structure your letter so they can easily determine what it is about and why it is important. Here is a general guide:
• First paragraph - Use the first paragraph to introduce your reason for writing, your position or request. If you are contacting them about a specific piece of legislation, identify it by the number or and topic. For example:
  - House - H.R. 1234 (for a House resolution)
  - Senate - S.B. 1234 (for a Senate bill).
• Second paragraph – Detail why this issue is important to you or your company. Be sure to note your qualifications, background and expertise, which makes your opinion more relevant.
• Third paragraph – Include facts, research, third-party references and other details to support your position.
• Fourth paragraph – Reference how the issue impacts or could impact your home district or state, your company and others who work there. Offer to provide any other helpful information.
• Fifth paragraph – Thank them for their past and future support.

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Sample Letter to a Member of Congress – Here is a sample letter for NRC members to use to help write to their Members of Congress. Be sure to customize it depending on whether you are writing a U.S. Representative or a Senator. Also include details specific to your job and company.

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